Episode 34: Illness as a Spiritual Guide

EPISODE OVERVIEW

This week, I chat with Emily Whitish, a psychotherapist practicing in Gig Harbor, WA. Emily works with people with medical conditions, injury, and disability and she herself was diagnosed with Crohn’s disease five years ago. In her life and work, she notices how illness reveals all the unworkable and stuck places in our lives, and gives us an opportunity to change the way we see ourselves, our relationships, and our bigger purpose. She loves helping her clients see illness as an invitation to move towards a more rich and meaningful life. In this episode, we hear more about how Crohn’s disease did this for Emily.

“I now know a type of suffering that gave me the clarity I needed to see who I was, what my relationship was to myself. I don’t think I’d take the suffering away.” — EMILY WHITISH

Highlights

When someone is diagnosed with an illness, chronic or not, it can be easy to start “waging a war” against it, as Emily puts it. But on her journey with Crohn’s disease, Emily discovered that letting the illness “have a say” was the best approach for her. During the interview, Emily shares this and so much more wisdom, including:

Why it’s sometimes so difficult to see our illness as a part of ourselves.

How Emily’s definition of healing has changed since her diagnosis.

What you can learn from your illness when you get still.

The power of friends who can just sit with you in the darker moments of illness.

How suffering from an illness and your experiences give you clarity on yourself and what’s most important.

I think many of us facing health challenges can relate to Emily’s experiences, but I also think she gives such a powerful perspective on embracing the journey.

EMILY WHITISH

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